Executive Team

Lindsay Herndon is Caz Recovery’s CEO. She is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and has led multi-faceted, diverse, and talented teams in behavioral healthcare for nearly a decade. Lindsay has been involved in all aspects of organizational oversight throughout her career. Most recently, she has started a successful mental health private practice that she built from the ground up.

She brings a particular emphasis on Trauma-Informed Care and creating progressive, evidence-based programs for people in need of support. This aligns perfectly with Caz Recovery’s mission, vision, and core values. In addition, Lindsay is passionate about strengthening the behavioral health workforce as much as possible. Throughout her career, she has sought to support staff by helping them effectively manage their life-saving and oftentimes challenging work.

Outside of work, Lindsay spends most of her time with what she calls her “small zoo.” This includes her husband, three children, three dogs, five cats, three frogs, and a koi pond. Along with this, Ms. Herndon loves the outdoors and tries to go running or hiking when the Buffalo weather allows.

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We brought Angela on board in 2013 to manage Liberty Hall, our former program in Batavia for homeless veterans. She quickly became such a valuable part of our team that she began overseeing other programs throughout the agency, as well. Angela is now our Director of Reintegration Services and oversees our Reintegration, Supportive Living, and Supported Housing programs. She’s particularly excited about expanding and growing our Supported Housing opportunities.

“These kinds of programs are so important,” Angela said. They’re often a critical point in the journey to independence for people with substance use disorders. Typically, residents begin looking for jobs or start going back to school during this period in their recovery. “When people have things to look forward to and be proud of, they’re much more successful,” she said. 

Angela has over seventeen years of experience in behavioral health and holds a bachelor’s degree in Community & Human Services with a concentration in Counseling from Empire State College. She is also a Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor (CASAC).

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Ed oversees all aspects of the agency’s communications and marketing. He joined the Caz Recovery team in 2014, and built the agency’s marketing efforts from the ground-up. Ed is also responsible for local, state, and federal advocacy efforts. He greatly enjoys collaborating with local and statewide partners to advance causes for both people with substance use disorders and providers where it matters most.

Likewise, he’s passionate about telling uplifting stories throughout the nonprofit sector, and has over thirteen years of experience with local nonprofits. “The community needs to know about the life-saving work we’re doing every single day,” he added. 

Ed has a bachelor’s degree in Art from the University at Buffalo, a master’s degree in International Relations from Webster University, and serves on the board of the Western New York Chemical Dependency Consortium as their Public Policy Chair. He’s currently on a digital nomad journey traveling around the East Coast escaping Buffalo’s winters.

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In 2018, we recruited Jane Gajewski as our Director of Food Services because of her leadership and operational skills. She brought extensive experience in improving food service programs for both nonprofits and large-scale residential facilities. More importantly, Jane lives by a strong, person-centered service model and offers respect and caring to our residents through the food service programs she has developed.

Jane is enthusiastic about providing healthier options to the people we support. Nourishment and nutrition have a critical role in the recovery process, and Jane’s programming accounts for the harmful effects addiction can take on the human body. In addition, Jane recognizes that we have a wonderful opportunity to teach our residents healthier eating habits. “I believe it will make them more successful once they walk out the door,” she said. “At the end of the day, knowing that food service played a part in the recovery process is very rewarding.”

Jane has dual associates’ degrees in Dietetic Technology and Food Service Management from Erie Community College, and she has been in the food service industry for over 35 years. She loves reading, hanging out with her partner and cat, and has a strong aversion to cold weather.

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Jenn has been a member of Caz Recovery’s team since 2018 when she started as our Accounts Payable Coordinator. She was later promoted to Senior Accountant, and now she’s serving as our Director of Finance.

Numbers come naturally to Jenn, and she enjoys the “more analytical” approach found in financial and accounting work. That’s what drove her to obtain a bachelor’s degree from Buffalo State College in Finance and Economics with a minor in Business Administration.

She lives in Elma with her husband and two children. Together, her family enjoys the ample outdoor activities that Western New York has to offer. Hiking is one of her favorites. Jenn also likes to cook, though she admits that she’s “not very good at it.” However, those who’ve tried her dishes at our Administrative Office’s holiday potluck lunches would disagree.

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Kristin Minervini joined Caz Recovery in 2021 as our Director of Human Resources. She has thirteen years of Human Resources experience with extensive knowledge of human services agencies. Kristin is a credentialed Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and is a Certified Professional through the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM-CP). She has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University at Buffalo’s School of Management and an associate’s degree from Erie Community College in Office Management & Administration.

Since joining us, Kristin has been instrumental in bringing transformational and well-regarded initiatives to our Human Resources department at a time of significant challenge for the sector’s workforce. She lives in Amherst with her husband, two children, dog, and chickens. Kristin and her family love spending time outside, riding four-wheelers, and going on trips together.

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Andrea has been with Caz Recovery since 2010 has over 20 years of experience in behavioral health. Today, she oversees the operations of our Rehabilitation and many other programs. Andrea also ensures that the best possible clinical services are being provided throughout the agency. Our success over the last few years can be attributed to the decisive role Andrea has played. Through her leadership, our programs have adapted well in demanding times. 

Gratitude is a major value that Andrea promotes in her work. As such, she is grateful for the dedicated work of our staff. Their unyielding support for our residents has made Caz Recovery what it is today. “We have a great reputation because we do so much and we’re thorough,” said Andrea.

Andrea has a bachelor’s degree in Social Work from Buffalo State and an associate’s degree in Substance Use Counseling from Erie Community College. She is an Advanced Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor (CASAC) and is certified in trauma counseling. 

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Jay directs managed care, medical services, compliance, and intake operations throughout the agency. In turn, he’s responsible for diversifying our funding and developing strong relationships with managed care providers. “This is a huge challenge but also a very valuable opportunity,” he said. Not only does Jay believe this to be a beneficial development for the agency, it is also an exciting one. “We have a lot of talent on a number of levels that are working on this,” he said. 

Thanks to Jay’s considerable experience, our agency is well-suited to adapt to the changes coming our way. His background includes extensive experience as a clinician, administrator, educator, trainer, and program and system developer in working with individuals with trauma, criminal justice, developmental disability, and co-occurring mental health and substance use disorder issues. 

Jay joined Cazenovia Recovery in 2017. He has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from SUNY Fredonia and is a NYS-Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC). He is also Adjunct Faculty at the University at Buffalo School of Social Work, Vice President of the Board of Directors for Restoration Society, Inc. and a therapist with Give an Hour, a grassroots, volunteer veterans’ project. Jay has been recognized by Erie/Niagara NAMI, the Mental Health Association of Erie County, and the Western New York Chemical Dependency Consortium for his community contributions and service.